Stories for November 20th 2017

Poverty and scarcity are so extended in Venezuela that people now sell and buy food by the spoonful in a desperate attempt to overcome a situation that has worsened as the economy has entered into a growing hyperinflationary cycle.

Venezuela’s former attorney general urged the International Criminal Court to launch an investigation into alleged abuses of murder and torture by the leaders of the crisis-hit country. President “Nicolas Maduro and his government must pay for this, for these crimes against humanity,” said Luisa Ortega, after handing over to the tribunal in The Hague a dossier containing 1,000 pieces of evidence.

Former United States President Jimmy Carter was recently recognized by the Argentine government in a ceremony held at the Carter Center in Atlanta. Carter, 93, was conferred the highest honor awarded by the government of Argentina: the ‘Order of the Liberator General San Martín.’

Fernando Matthei Chile's ex commander of the Air Force and member of the military Junta, led by Augusto Pinchet, died on Sunday at the age of 92. The former pilot, was the father of Evelyn Matthei, who run and lost against Michelle Bachelet in the 2013 presidential election and since 2016 is mayor of Providencia, one of the main districts fo the capital Santiago.

Following on his congressional midterm election win, president Mauricio Macri sealed a fiscal agreement with governors of nearly all Argentine provinces in a sign of his growing clout in upcoming negotiations to close the budget deficit, reform labor legislation and open up the economy. However there are some warnings and indicators to keep watch off, according to an orthodox economist.

The ousted mayor of Caracas pledged to spread his protest against Venezuela's socialist government across the world as he arrived in Spain on Saturday, a day after escaping from house arrest and slipping past Venezuelan security forces into Colombia.

Talks on forming a coalition government in Germany have collapsed after the free-market liberal FDP pulled out. FDP leader Christian Lindner said there was no basis of trust with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative CDU/CSU bloc and the Greens.

The United States Navy has sent rescue equipment and crew to assist in the search for a missing Argentine Navy submarine and its 44 crew members. The San Diego based Undersea Rescue Command (URC) departed from Miramar Saturday with a Submarine Rescue Chamber (SRC) and four aircraft, en route to the Southern Atlantic, where the submarine A.R.A. San Juan lost contact with the Argentine Navy on Wednesday.

Conservative Sebastian Piñera, who held a commanding lead in Chile's first round of presidential voting, and leftist former TV journalist Alejandro Guillier will contest a runoff next month. Ex-president Piñera had a 36.6% lead to Guillier's 22.7% with more than 98% of the votes, --of a very low turnout, 46.6%--, counted after the first round.